Deep Thoughts...

McPain

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 18:40:36 GMT

a video: http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=184086&title=sarah-palin-gender-card (well worth the 5 minutes ) and a story http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080904/ap_on_el_pr/cvn_fact_check

Attacks, praise stretch truth at GOP convention

By JIM KUHNHENN, Associated Press WriterWed Sep 3, 11:48 PM ET

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and her Republican supporters held back little Wednesday as they issued dismissive attacks on Barack Obama and flattering praise on her credentials to be vice president. In some cases, the reproach and the praise stretched the truth.

Some examples:

PALIN: "I have protected the taxpayers by vetoing wasteful spending ... and championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress. I told the Congress 'thanks but no thanks' for that Bridge to Nowhere."

THE FACTS: As mayor of Wasilla, Palin hired a lobbyist and traveled to Washington annually to support earmarks for the town totaling $27 million. In her two years as governor, Alaska has requested nearly $750 million in special federal spending, by far the largest per-capita request in the nation. While Palin notes she rejected plans to build a $398 million bridge from Ketchikan to an island with 50 residents and an airport, that opposition came only after the plan was ridiculed nationally as a "bridge to nowhere."

PALIN: "There is much to like and admire about our opponent. But listening to him speak, it's easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform — not even in the state senate."

THE FACTS: Compared to McCain and his two decades in the Senate, Obama does have a more meager record. But he has worked with Republicans to pass legislation that expanded efforts to intercept illegal shipments of weapons of mass destruction and to help destroy conventional weapons stockpiles. The legislation became law last year. To demean that accomplishment would be to also demean the work of Republican Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, a respected foreign policy voice in the Senate. In Illinois, he was the leader on two big, contentious measures in Illinois: studying racial profiling by police and requiring recordings of interrogations in potential death penalty cases. He also successfully co-sponsored major ethics reform legislation.

PALIN: "The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes, raise payroll taxes, raise investment income taxes, raise the death tax, raise business taxes, and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars."

THE FACTS: The Tax Policy Center, a think tank run jointly by the Brookings Institution and the Urban Institute, concluded that Obama's plan would increase after-tax income for middle-income taxpayers by about 5 percent by 2012, or nearly $2,200 annually. McCain's plan, which cuts taxes across all income levels, would raise after tax-income for middle-income taxpayers by 3 percent, the center concluded.

Obama would provide $80 billion in tax breaks, mainly for poor workers and the elderly, including tripling the Earned Income Tax Credit for minimum-wage workers and higher credits for larger families.

He also would raise income taxes, capital gains and dividend taxes on the wealthiest. He would raise payroll taxes on taxpayers with incomes above $250,000, and he would raise corporate taxes. Small businesses that make more than $250,000 a year would see taxes rise.

MCCAIN: "She's been governor of our largest state, in charge of 20 percent of America's energy supply ... She's responsible for 20 percent of the nation's energy supply. I'm entertained by the comparison and I hope we can keep making that comparison that running a political campaign is somehow comparable to being the executive of the largest state in America," he said in an interview with ABC News' Charles Gibson.

THE FACTS: McCain's phrasing exaggerates both claims. Palin is governor of a state that ranks second nationally in crude oil production, but she's no more "responsible" for that resource than President Bush was when he was governor of Texas, another oil-producing state. In fact, her primary power is the ability to tax oil, which she did in concert with the Alaska Legislature. And where Alaska is the largest state in America, McCain could as easily have called it the 47th largest state — by population.

MCCAIN: "She's the commander of the Alaska National Guard. ... She has been in charge, and she has had national security as one of her primary responsibilities," he said on ABC.

THE FACTS: While governors are in charge of their state guard units, that authority ends whenever those units are called to actual military service. When guard units are deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, for example, they assume those duties under "federal status," which means they report to the Defense Department, not their governors. Alaska's national guard units have a total of about 4,200 personnel, among the smallest of state guard organizations.

FORMER ARKANSAS GOV. MIKE HUCKABEE: Palin "got more votes running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska than Joe Biden got running for president of the United States."

THE FACTS: A whopper. Palin got 616 votes in the 1996 mayor's election, and got 909 in her 1999 re-election race, for a total of 1,525. Biden dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses, but he still got 76,165 votes in 23 states and the District of Columbia where he was on the ballot during the 2008 presidential primaries.

FORMER MASSACHUSETTS GOV. MITT ROMNEY: "We need change, all right — change from a liberal Washington to a conservative Washington! We have a prescription for every American who wants change in Washington — throw out the big-government liberals, and elect John McCain and Sarah Palin."

THE FACTS: A Back-to-the-Future moment. George W. Bush, a conservative Republican, has been president for nearly eight years. And until last year, Republicans controlled Congress. Only since January 2007 have Democrats have been in charge of the House and Senate.

Obama and his two dads....

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 05:18:27 GMT

A J-High Gal

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 18:51:09 GMT

happy first day of high school christina.

word of the day

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 03:53:20 GMT

bitchassness: punking out instead of buckling down and doing the right thing.

time flies

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 04:50:39 GMT

just realized that i haven't posted in forever again. guess i've been busy, but for the life of me can't think of anything exciting that's happened.

the kids are good but think i have a money tree in the backyard. after 8 years of wearing a uniform, christina has convinced us she must fill her closet with new stuff before school starts. she's a master online shopper, bless her heart. and then alexandra put the pressure on -- all her stuff is ugly and hand-me-downs, so she needs to shop too. yeah, of course you do. and michael, he doesn't give a crap about that but if the girls are shopping then he thinks he has every right to ask for more transformers, new golf clubs and another basketball. i need to learn the art of saying no.

oh, for my idiot moment of the day -- i cleaned out the car (it was horrid after a weekend of soccer games) today. after taking all the crap to the garbage, i started hunting around for my cell. yep, i had thrown it away when i dumped the frap cups, and it landed AT THE BOTTOM of the can. when i finally pulled it out (i was almost upside down trying to reach it), it was dripping with brown goo. and it smelled. i wish i could dip it in bleach or something.

that's all i know for now...happy almost monday everyone

don't mock me

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 00:27:32 GMT

the girls laugh at me because i am on a first name basis with the three UPS drivers that cover our neighborhood. see, i like to shop online. and in the "i should have seen this one coming" department, the girls are getting pretty good at it too, especially now that school's out. so far they are outpacing me 5-1 on the deliveries.

it's the ribs!

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 05:50:52 GMT

AAAAHHHHH! Christina went to a spine specialist today and bless that woman's heart, she is very certain that part of the issues my little baby is having started when she strained two of her ribs. the ribs are out of whack and pushing on the large muscle that wraps from her back and under her armpit. we all did a little happy dance tonight that we at least have partial answers (still need to solve the shoulder issue). PT is still the way to go, but at least now they know how to treat it.

priceless

Sun, 22 Jun 2008 03:44:51 GMT

shoe size

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 17:54:23 GMT

took michael to get new shoes - he's a SIX in men's shoes. am i the only one who thinks that's big for an 8 year old?

Christina

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 06:06:49 GMT

Congratulations to my little Christina. On to high school!

Shell: how not to respond to customer problems

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 23:41:48 GMT

Wow.

Drivers: Shell follows bad gas with bad service

Snohomish Shell station where the bad gas was sold

Story Updated: Jun 2, 2008 at 10:31 AM PDT

By Nicole Sanchez

Video

SEATTLE - Some local drivers whose car engines were badly damaged by bad gasoline last weekend say they're frustrated with how Shell Oil is treating them.

They say they have to pay all of the repair costs up front - and still aren't guaranteed they'll be reimbursed. Mechanics are having a hard time fixing the cars because they've never seen contaminated gas like this before.

"We're frustrated - not happy - with Shell," says Dave Trengrove, whose wife filled up last Sunday at the Shell station in Snohomish.

She wasn't even able to make it out of the station before the car died - and she wasn't alone.

"Somebody just put gas in their RV - they were never even able to start the RV and move out of the gas station," says Trengrove.

At least 10 cars had problems after several stations in the area received the contaminated gas. Shell Oil says the gas was mixed with water - then distributed from a terminal in Seattle. But some mechanics say they're not so sure this is just water.

"You know, we've never seen anything at this level before," says Brian Rex, owner of Fleet Service. "We've had contaminated gas, but never at this level before."

Examination of the contaminated gas shows it contains a mucky sludge. About 14 gallons of the sludge was found in Trengtive's car.

The auto shop says Shell Oil will not pick up the contaminated gas. And since they don't know what's in it, they may have to pay to have a hazardous material crew to safely get rid of it.

In the meantime, drivers like Trengove are left without a car - and without answers. What they do have are bills that are adding up - bills they're not even sure Shell Oil will take care of.

Trengrove said a Shell Oil representative told him that they would not talk to him until he has all his repair receipts, and even then there was no understanding that he would be reimbursed for all the charges.

KOMO News attempted to talk with Shell Oil about these concerns, but the calls have not been returned.

Meanwhile, other people who got the contaminated gas say they are running into similar problems.

One family finally got their car fixed - but it cost them more than $2,000, and they have not yet been reimbursed.

They also say they're mechanic told them he too has never seen contamined gas quite like this.

what not to wear

Tue, 13 May 2008 05:24:23 GMT

wow.....full story here

What the F

Tue, 06 May 2008 20:25:44 GMT

someone stole the gas out of my old car last night. can you believe that shit?

time flies

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 05:20:04 GMT

been a crazy few weeks filled with a ton of work and a little life :) christina signed up for all her classes at jesuit. i still can't believe she is headed to high school. god, time flies. she's taking english honors, japanese, physics honors, computer lit honors, alg 2/trig honors, theology, and PE. makes me tired just writing it. alexandra is winding down spring soccer then heads to tryouts and it all starts over again. major drama with some of the parents on this team -- they want their girls to be on the top seeded team, but not all the girls are, well, that great. so some are moving to different clubs. whatever. if ali is learning and having fun, that's all i want. cracks me up that these folks forget the girls are only eleven. she's a rockstar in school. she won the A+ contest with christina this time around (the girls see who can get the most on their report cards). too funny. and then we have little man michael. he's starting to shine in the smartass department. not sure if i like it, but can't say i am surprised. he's got a lot of influence around him. the kid loves the drums and is a basketball freak. so if he's not dribbling around the house, we hear him in the basement on his drums. not quiet, that's for sure. my goal for the next month is to hang more with my friends...feels like i've been working too much to do that lately, so need to get back to the important things.

and a feel good story for the night: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/columns/story?columnist=hays_graham&id=3372631

medical update :-)

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 20:48:32 GMT

>one broken finger (not gamekeeper's whatever). in a splint for 2-3weeks, back for more xrays, then she's clear! yippee

>one NORMAL bone scan (thank GOD!) but the doc still doesn't know what's causing the horrid pain. so more PT and then we'll see what happens. my poor little lady.

a day in the life??? please tell me no

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 05:59:10 GMT

the doctor still doesn't know what's wrong with christina's arm, so he ordered a bone scan. she had it today. while we both thought the morning would be the toughest (that's where they inject the radiotracer into her veins so she glows pretty for the scan a few hours later), she was an absolute star through that part.

then it's time to take the images. they held her arm out to the side and then strapped it to the device so they could get the image. christina can't move her arm without pain. it hurts when i give her a hug. so she was in a ton of pain about three seconds into this effort and they said she was supposed to stay like that for 4 minutes. yes, she was standing up. with her arm taped to a machine. after about 2 minutes of torture, she looked awful. pastey. sweaty. so i told the technician and by the time they got her unglued from the machine she was close to passing out. and she still had 5 images to take. the poor little girl. just broke my heart. she rested for a few minutes then they tried again. she lasted about 3 minutes this time, but after trying her best to stand still, she just couldn't do it. they even had to bring in a gurney so she could lay down with her feet elevated. and all i could do was try to hold her and make her feel better. they finally rigged up a chair so she could sit through the next few exposures and that was better but not great. so after 7 long hours at or very near emanuel hospital, we were finally on our way home. so so proud of my little lady.

all i wanted to do was get her home and in bed (she was exhausted) but alexandra had soccer practice and it was my turn to drive. got all the little ladies there and then christina and went downtown to just hang out (my mom had little man michael). went back to pick up the girls and alexandra was super quiet.

me: "ali, what's up? you okay?"

ali: "i just hurt"

me: "your knee, heal or butt" (she fell on her butt last practice)

ali: "nah, i kind of hurt my thumb"

long story even longer, after dropping off the other girls and getting christina settled in at home (she was still feeling like crap), alexandra and i headed BACK emanuel. but this time to the emergency room. we just got back. no broken bones thankfully, but it was really swollen...they put her hand in a splint and suspect she has something called gamekeeper's thumb. they won't know for sure until an orthopedic takes a closer look.

good news -- christina already has an appointment on tuesday...wonder if they'll let me bring her in at the same time....kind of like a 2-fer....

Neighbors

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 04:37:15 GMT

To the lady and her brats who walk by our house too often:

I don't care if your kids are only three and five years old. It's okay to say no to them. Really. So next time you need to practice please TELL THEM TO STOP MESSING WITH MY FLOWERS. Smell them, look at them, talk about them. But SON OF A BITCH, get your snot-nosed dirty kids out of my flower beds and tell them it's NOT OKAY to PICK SOMEONE ELSE'S FLOWERS. And for the love of all things holy, DON'T throw MY flowers in the STREET. If you mess with them again, I will have both my BIG dogs POO in your nasty yard every single night. And I won't pick it up.

(okay, i feel so much better now...thanks for letting me vent).

fresh lipstick and tidied hair

Wed, 09 Apr 2008 01:56:00 GMT

that's what a lady in the office needs! check this out: http://i28.tinypic.com/2ih75hg.jpg

*thanks Ry-ry.

strike two

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 03:00:49 GMT

i am not having good luck with this car. had the kids loaded in the car last night to go to dinner. pulled the release on the emergency break and pop. the damn cable broke. without releasing the break. and what does any independent girl do in times like that? you bet. called my daddy and he rescued me. showed me where the release latch was hidden and off we went!

Are you kidding?

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 02:06:31 GMT

while it would be nice to lounge by the pool all day, every SINGLE day, i do try to get a bit of exercise. today i went on a loop up highway 74 and then back down through the neighborhoods. nothing too exciting. on the way back down the hill, i noticed an older guy in sitting in his pimped out maroon golf cart. then i see his two cute fluffy dogs on the grass taking care of business. i keep going...about 3 minutes later i can hear them behind me. when they passed, i laughed out loud. he was driving his cart, and the two foofie dogs were running along side. priceless.

Photo Album: Christina Graduation

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 03:39:50 GMT

Christina Graduation

mikey and christina

tada

threekids

one more

ALL PICS 167

Photo Album: Palm Desert '08

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 23:52:09 GMT

Palm Desert '08

DSC_0890

DSC_0913

DSC_0905

DSC_0917

DSC_0903

DSC_0920

DSC_0894

DSC_0901

DSC_0908

Photo Album: Beach

Tue, 13 Nov 2007 02:36:24 GMT

Beach

my three cuties

christina braving the wind

trying to walk

Ali trying to stand still

blowing her over

mom, enough with the pics

seriously, let's go

one more group shot

fun in the pool

are you watching

More Photos...

Photo Album: Halloween 2007

Mon, 05 Nov 2007 02:15:16 GMT

Halloween 2007

Alexandra

Alexandra and Ella

The kids

Ali, Annie, Alison and Ella

Spidey

The Twins

Sierra

Some of the kiddies

Amazing face

Spooky Noah

More Photos...

Photo Album: fall soccer

Tue, 30 Oct 2007 05:47:12 GMT

fall soccer

Watching Michael

All smiles

my dollbaby

Cute little Ali

Where are the teeth

waiting to start

Go Michael

Hanging with the team

Water break

A break

More Photos...

Photo Album: Acupuncture and Ducks

Thu, 25 Oct 2007 00:58:10 GMT

Acupuncture and Ducks

PIC-0026

PIC-0027

go ducks 002 (2)

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Photo Album: christina in london

Thu, 27 Sep 2007 06:05:38 GMT

christina in london

love this one

the 100th church they went to :)

o so amazing

her buddy

the whole group

girls checking out the sites

the gang

so cute ;)

catching some zzzzzzzzs

More Photos...

Photo Album: Disneyland Take 2

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 05:47:01 GMT

Disneyland Take 2

Disney

Shopping..

three cuties

KO..DA

no idea who this guy is

Chip

Brother Bear

um....

Bear Bear

Big Bear Bear Hug

More Photos...

Photo Album: palm springs

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 22:38:13 GMT

palm springs

Palm Springs 016

Palm Springs 015

Palm Springs 011

Palm Springs 060

Palm Springs 056

Palm Springs 057

Palm Springs 054

Palm Springs 005

Palm Springs 013

Palm Springs 039

More Photos...

Photo Album: soccer tourney

Sun, 25 Feb 2007 04:29:51 GMT

soccer tourney

Go Cosmos

GET IT

Boom

that's MINE

little man

never too old to swing

hey

my girls

can we go yet???

Photo Album: My babies

Thu, 15 Feb 2007 17:56:47 GMT

My babies

kids 008

zaza

kids 001

kids 012

Photo Album: boys in the snow

Tue, 16 Jan 2007 22:45:46 GMT

boys in the snow

okaaaay

what is this?

this shit is cold

i think...

i'll take a bite!

YUMMY

cool

come get me!

MY BALL

tag

More Photos...

Photo Album: Firsts: School and Dance

Tue, 12 Sep 2006 04:35:28 GMT

Firsts: School and Dance

Frist day of school 2006

first dance of 2006

Photo Album: June 17

Sun, 18 Jun 2006 05:25:18 GMT

June 17

Photo Album: June 08

Fri, 09 Jun 2006 05:44:39 GMT

June 08

April 2006 001

April 2006 009

April 2006 016

April 2006 034

April 2006 070

March to May 045

March to May 046

March to May 066

March to May 073

Photo Album: February 03

Sun, 05 Feb 2006 03:17:40 GMT

February 03

Shaq

Kobe

Christina and Shaq

Ali and Kobe

Ali and Shaq

Michael and Kobe

My 3 Sons

Miss Christina

Alexandra

More Photos...

Photo Album: October 30

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 07:17:26 GMT

October 30

First day of 6th, 4th and Kindergarten

Not too serious

Frist day in uniform

playing in the rain

running in the rain